Eventide PitchFactor Review – Best Guitar Harmonizer Pedal?

By Gabriel Tanaka

The Eventide PitchFactor Harmonizer pedal aims to deliver the power and performance of Eventide’s world-renowned Harmonizer rack effects in a compact stompbox design. Eventide have packed the PitchFactor with 10 of their best pitch/delay effects for unrivaled versatility that exceeds what other guitar pedals offer. Does it live up to the hype? Is it the best guitar harmonizer pedal out there? In our Eventide PitchFactor review, you’ll find out.

Let’s run down what all the PitchFactor features.

Features:

10 of Eventide’s signature stereo or mono pitch+delay effects:

Diatonic

PitchFlex™

Quadravox™

Octaver™

HarModulator™

Crystals™

MicroPitch

HarPeggiator™

H910 / H949

Synthonizer™

Up to 4 voices of diatonic pitch shifting and up to 1.5 seconds of stereo delay

Now let’s get on to the real test of this Eventide PitchFactor review.

Sound & Performance:

I must say that I was very excited about this pedal upon receiving it. The first thing I did when I plugged it in was pull out my old transcription book from Steve Vai’s classic Passion and Warfare album, dial up the Ballerina 12/24 preset, and see if I could really get that sound.

Needless to say, my mind was blown. Suddenly, I was pulling off all of those classic harmonizer sounds without having spent several thousand dollars for a massive Eventide rack unit. It’s quite a feat that those legendary sounds are now available in a compact stompbox.

Wow. Kudos to Eventide for that alone.

I want to cover everything and run down each mode briefly with a short summary of my thoughts.

Diatonic

While other harmony pedals give you a choice of an additional note or two, the PitchFactor’s Diatonic mode stands apart in letting you delay each harmonized note by a carefully specified amount to add unique rhythmic variations to your playing. This is one of the go-to harmony effects this pedal offers.

Quadravox™

This effect lets you add up to 4 pitch shifted voices to the original note. It can sound awesome with careful attenuation. If extreme is your thing, you can certainly craft some over-the-top orchestral voices.

HarModulator™

This effect can get extreme as well, taking you from subtle modulation effects across it’s amazing 6-octave range (3 up and 3 down) to intense otherworldly insanity. The mothership has arrived.

MicroPitch

This effect offers you very subtle pitch shifting for fattening up your sound with chorus-like effects and slap-back delays. This effect certainly shows off the versatility of the PitchFactor as it can serve as a great chorus effect when not needed for serious pitch shifting.

H910 / H949

This effect emulates the classic harmonizer rack units that this pedal is based off. You can switch between 4 different modes for a wide range of pitch-shifted and delayed sounds only now with 10 times the maximum delay of the original gear. You can go deep here to really craft your perfect sound.

PitchFlex™

This effect may be used with an expression pedal or the Flex footswitch to create Whammy-style effects. It may even render your Digitech Whammy obsolete if you’re wanting to save space on your pedalboard.

Octaver™

You can use this effect to get great sub-octave synth-like tones. Modulation further helps to create a unique sound, while a great-sounding fuzz distortion adds even more character to the tone.

Crystals™

This is one of the signature sounds that only Eventide delivers. Using these twin reverse pitch-shifters with adjustable delay and added reverb gives you a cascading ethereal sound that’s great for creating shimmering soundscapes.

HarPeggiator™

This effect is really cool. It’s great for creating rhythmic patterns that shift, glitch, and chop. Really interesting for industrial and electronic types of sounds. Spend some time with it to create some really good pitch shifted grooves.

Synthonizer™

Another one of my favorites, this effect gives you really cool Theremin-like sounds and smooth synth-style tones. Really great if you’re looking for some unique lead tones.

This pedal can do a lot. It’s more of a multi-effects pedal than a simple harmony effect. You can consolidate space on your pedalboard and get sounds you’ll find nowhere else with the PitchFactor.

Some people are concerned with the size and want even more foot control than the 3 on-board footswitches provide. Fortunately, you can connect an external footswitch if needed. The PitchFactor is full programmable, so you can set it up to function however you like. I personally find that the 3 included footswitches strike the perfect balance between size, comfort, and functionality. The pedal is a superb feat of design.

Tracking is great overall. You can confuse the algorithms if you push it hard with super fast runs, but if it can handle what Steve Vai dishes at his Harmonizer, you’ll certainly do well by the PitchFactor.

The only issue for some people may be the price. I don’t factor that in when writing reviews because sound quality and functionality are priceless to me. Just keep in mind that Eventide Harmonizer rack units cost thousands of dollars. And the fact that this pedal can replace your delay, chorus, Whammy, and more, make it a very good investment for years of use. You really get what you pay for, and this pedal is a great investment for those wanting to take their sound to the next level. Of course, you should also check out the Eventide H9, the latest harmonizer that features all the effects of Eventide’s entire “Factor” series of pedals and their Space reverb.

Eventide have gone above and beyond to pack so many features and sounds into the PitchFactor. It’s like the Lamborghini of stompbox pedals, offering unrivaled craftsmanship and performance for those who accept no less than the very best. Not only will it give you incredible pitch shifting performance, but it just might replace a few other effects on your pedalboard as well. And it will become your muse with otherworldly sounds you won’t find anywhere else. If you want the best and most innovative harmonizing effects out there, the PitchFactor is a must-have. It’s the best guitar harmonizer pedal you can buy.